Music Meme

Okay, as anyone who knows me will tell you, I have horrid taste in music. However, I have gamely undergone this somewhat painful meme that the profoundly evil Judith developed. I have done so for one reason--so that I can now inflict it on three people who undoubtedly have better taste in music than I do.

So, drumroll please:

Misanthropster, Alex (of Holtetboards), and Matt (of Animal Mind), you three are on!

What’s a great late night song?
Close the Door, Lou Reed (okay, I'm a little bent)

Name 5 wistful/bittersweet songs:
"I Hold Your Hand In Mine" - Tom Lehrer (okay, I'm a lot bent),
"All I Wanna Do" - Heart
"Somebody's Crying" - Chris Isaac
"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" - Judy Garland
"Christmastime Is Here Again" - Vince Guaraldi



The 4 Best Songs Ever Written:
Nope, I'm not touching that one with a vaccinated crowbar. I will, however, mention three songs that I think are really well done.
"Condition" Kenny Rodgers
"Sweet Home Alabama" Lynyrd Skynyrd
"Free Falling" Tom Petty
"People are Strange" The Doors

3 Current Favorite Songs:
Lately I find myself obsessively listening to Wildflowers by Tom Petty, Rockin' in the Weary Land by Donna the Buffalo, and "Too Long In the Wasteland" by James McMurtry

A Classic Drinking Music album:
Best of Jimmy Buffett

A Song You Want (or did) To Play At Your Wedding:
How about one I wish I played? The Way You Look Tonight

4 Good Angry Songs:
"Hello, Dad, I'm in Jail"
"Sink the Censorship" Disappear Fear
"Idiot Wind" Bob Dylan
"You Oughta Know" Alanis Morissette

One of Your Favorite Lyrics:
From "Angeline," by Larry McMurtry

Barefoot in the autumn weeds
Cotton dress hanging to your knees
to the eyes of a stranger
You offered a smile
I went to work in your daddy's fields
Didn't seem like such a bad deal
At least it would do for a while.

We were both young and unabashed
We took what life offered
When the folks were distracted
Or too tired to care
With a frost on the land
The fates forced our hand
Your dresses fit tighter
With the spring in the air.

3 Cover Songs Arguably Better Than the Original:
Danny's Song - Me First and the Gimme Gimmes
Money - The Flying Lizards
With a Little Help - Joe Cocker



Ironic Song to Brutally Murder Someone to in a movie:
Fish Heads - Barnes and Barnes

Good Album to Clean The House To:
Best of the Temptations

Good Dining Music:
Anything by Mellow, Morphine, or Frank Sinatra

A Good Album To Put You In the Mood (that is NOT Sade, Marvin Gaye or Barry White):
Let's be honest--almost anything will work (I'm a guy)

Good Album To Sleep To:
Nomads, Indians, Saints - Indigo Girls

2 Songs That are Too Damn Sad:
"Hurt" - Nine Inch Nails

Great Love Song:
"They Can't Take That Away From Me" by George and Ira Gershwin. I like to imagine a guy in a mental institution or an Orwellian prison humming this to himself as they administer the Sodium Pentothal.

Song To An Ex That Isn’t Meanspirited:
"Whatever" - The Asylum Street Spankers

Song To An Ex That Is Kinda Meanspirited:
"Don't Fear the Reaper" - Blue Oyster Cult



Song to lose your Mind to:
"When the Trixter Starts a-Pokin'" Gogol Bordello

4 Songs That Make You Feel Amped and Inspired:
"The Battle Hymn of the Republic"
"Rock Me Like a Hurricane" Scorpionz
"Eye of the Tiger" (also best workout song ever)
"When I Was Born" Barenaked Ladies (more inspired than amped)

3 songs that are guilty pleasures:
Most of my preferred music is a guilty pleasure. Okay, how about "Annie's Song" by John Denver, "I Could Be Your Girlfriend" by Avril Lavigne, and "Tom's Diner" by Suzanne Vega. Embarrassingly enough, I also own a fair bit of Roger Whittaker.

Criminally Underrated Band That Didn’t Get Attention and Then Broke Up:
Strange Fruit

Best Screw You I Am a Teenager in Pain Song:
How about "Best I am a whiny pencil-neck living in the middle of the 1980's" song? The answer is, of course, "People Are People" by Depressed, excuse me, Depeche Mode.

Feel No Shame, Great Current Pop Songs:
I hate to say it, but I think "The Black Parade" might count as a great rock anthem.

Album No One Would Expect You To Love:
Latino Crooners

Hip-Hop Song You Know All the Lyrics Too:
Actually, there isn't one.

Random Album You Loved In High School But Are Afraid To Admit It:
Faith by George Michaels

Album You May Have Listened To More In High School than Any Other Album:
Basically, any comedy album by Monty Python, any musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber, and a fair bit of Jethro Tull

Album To Clear A Room With:
Soft, Safe, and Sanitized

Catz Quiz

Okay, the famous Judith has hit me with a meme. I'm passing it on to the incredible Odat, the amazing Monicker, and the astounding Lexy

Of course, I'm also hoping that flattery will keep them from getting ticked off at being tagged.

1. A song?
"Close the Door," Velvet Underground

2. An 80's rock album?
Fine Young Cannibals, The Raw and the Cooked

3. A singer?
Nina Simone

4. A man?
Roald Dahl

5. A woman?
Ann Richards

6. A writer?
Anais Nin

7. A book?
The Last Picture Show

8. A word?
tompion

9. A movie?
The Exorcist

10. A wise statement?
Now I know the things I know,
And I do the things I do;
And if you do not like me so,
To hell, my love, with you!
-Dorothy Parker

11. A colour?
Purple

12. A flower?
Bleeding Heart

13. A fictional character?
Tucker Case

14. A name?
Roswell P. Brown

15. A guitarist?
Eric Clapton

16. A guitar?
A Rickenbacker

17. An Age?
The Enlightenment, or 27

18. A famous Historical character?
Henry II of England

19. A flavour?
Anise

20. A meal?
Sesame Chicken with vegetable Lo Mein

21. A country?
Poland

22. A city?
San Francisco

23. A monument?
The National D-Day Memorial, Bedford, Virginia

Aucturian Meme

Judith tagged me with this meme. I'm not sure if she wrote it herself, but it was a lot of fun, so I decided to pass on the joy. Olives, Mystic Wing, and the CEO all get this one.

Another profoundly cool thing that Judith did was offer a song as a payoff for the meme. Here's one that I enjoy. I don't know if this is the best cover by Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, but it's the best one I could find on YouTube:



If you could have any piece of art what would it be?
Part of me would want some Jeff Koons, just so I could spare the world, but I think I'd go with Night Cafe by Van Gogh (I know--obvious choice).

Name two of your guilty pleasures
Drinking heavy cream mixed with sugar and masturbation.

If you were an actor/actress who would it be and what movie would you choose to take the lead role in?
Bogart, Maltese Falcon.

What's the most romantic gesture someone's made to you?
I'm not going to answer this one.

Who's your favorite superhero / villain?
The Badger.

What's your favorite leftover food?
Szechuan Beef

Describe in five words how you saw yourself in high school
Smart, geeky, funny, chubby, goofy.

If you could live anywhere in the world were would it be and why?
Tough question! Probably Prague--great food, creepy atmosphere, wonderful people, and excellent public attractions.

Name five good gifts you would like to recieve (within reason- no sports cars etc)
A cashmere sweater, a new briefcase/messenger bag, some nice shirts, any of the Universal monster film re-releases on DVD, and a signed first edition of Lamb.

If you could live one week in a cartoon what would it be and why?
Johnny Quest, because it'd be a really exciting week.

Oooh, oooh, or Scooby Doo for the same reason, plus the weed.

Dinner for five - who would you invite (the world is your oyster)
Franz Kafka, Shel Silverstein, Ambrose Bierce, George Orwell, and Idi Amin.

Book Meme

Judith tagged me with this meme a couple of days ago, but...well, you know.

1. Grab the book closest to you.
2. Open to page 123, go down to the fifth sentence
3. Post the text of next 3 sentences on your blog
4. Name of the book and the author
5. Tag three people

The book closest to me is The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove by Christopher Moore, one of my favorite authors.

Here are the three sentences:

"It's only one of the things I do. Mostly, I count dead things on the beach."
"Fascinating work," Val said with no attempt to hide her contempt.

I tag...Claudia, Pickled Olives, and Ramo.

Nine Weird Things About Myself

Okay, I'll just admit it--I got my wife's help with this meme. When Hearts in San Francisco tagged me, I freaked out a little. After all, I think I'm pretty normal. Honestly, is it weird to spend all your time drawing pictures of Bea Arthur on your naked legs while listening to old Roger Whittaker albums? Is it strange to steal pebbles from your neighbors' driveways while dressed like a Jawa? Is it odd to cover your body in Thai peanut sauce and dance the tango with a half-wild ferret named "John Ehrlichman"?

I didn't think so, either.

So, anyway, here are nine things that my wife and I agreed are at least moderately weird.

1. I xeroxed my butt on the House of Commons copying machine. I was working as a legislative assistant to an MP in the House of Commons, and tended to get a little obsessive about work, so I often stayed in my office long after everyone else had left. One evening, while doing some xeroxing, I decided that I would never again have the opportunity, so...what the hell. I finally lost the xerox copy a few years ago.

2. When I was 21, I became my little sister's legal guardian and raised her until I was 30. My mother died when I was 20, and my father died when I was 21. One of his last requests was that I take care of my sister, so I agreed to do so. Over the next nine years, I had the honor, and the joy, of helping her develop into a confident and brilliant young woman. This year, she graduated Summa Cum Laude from the art school at Virginia Commonwealth University.

3. According to my wife, I'm obsessive about q-tip usage. I don't think this is particularly true, although her evidence is pretty compelling. I just tend to get a little upset when we run out of q-tips. Or when people buy off-brand q-tips. Or when people touch my q-tips. With their grubby, q-tip stealing fingers.

4. In High School, I seriously contemplated becoming a priest. I liked the idea of a life of the mind and the spirit, and the priesthood seemed like a pretty good gig. I particularly enjoyed the idea of counseling people. I ultimately decided against it because, even at 15, my incredibly strong arm muscles indicated that celibacy was not for me.

5. I taught myself Polish. I had a little thing with a Polish woman, and I started studying Polish so we could better communicate. When the relationship folded, I kept working on the language because I was totally hooked. Later, when my girlfriend and I traveled to Poland, my linguistic (and lingual) abilities came in handy. I proposed to her on that trip. My Polish is a little rusty now, but my mind still vomits up the occasional word or phrase.

6. I really, really like "evil children" movies. I don't even want to think about why this is, but The Exorcist is one of my favorite films, and Children of the Corn, Village of the Damned, The Omen, and The Ring all still have some power over me. There's something about evil children that just really scares me to death.

7. I will drive twenty miles out of my way to go to a private, or family-owned restaurant. I get especially excited if they have something really odd on the menu, like butterscotch pie, grape-nut custard, peanut soup, and so on. I usually try to buy t-shirts from these restaurants, even though I don't wear t-shirts. I also make a point of avoiding hotel chains as much as possible. Although privately-owned restaurants and hotels are sometimes not as polished as their chain counterparts, there's something homey about them that makes me seek them out.

8. I love religious horror movies. Okay, I know that this one's closely related to the "evil children" movies, but I'd argue that it's different enough to warrant its own number. I love movies about demons, Satan, and so on. I even enjoy the crappy ones, like End of Days, Stigmata, Exorcist II: the Heretic, and so on. In general, I'm really interested in people's views of the end of the world and of morality in general.


9. I'm obsessed with the Holocaust. I've studied it in school, read extensively on it, and have traveled to several Holocaust sites. Part of my obsession is probably because my mother was Jewish, but that really doesn't get to the heart of it. I think I'm most intrigued by the intellectual gymnastics that otherwise sane people went through in order to become capable of mass murder. After all my research and travel, I still can hardly believe, much less comprehend, the fact of this.



I'm tagging Lee, the CEO, and Parlancheq with this one. You're on, lady and gentlemen.